The end of DACA program for undocumented youth: I even have trouble sleeping'

Christian Martinez, 17, is a student in Waterford. He worries about the possible end to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program cancelled by President Donald J. Trump. (Natalie Broda/Digital First Media)

Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico was the keynote speaker for the Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society’s 10th anniversary lecture series, which drew a capacity crowd at Wayne State University’s Community Arts Auditorium, Monday evening. GINA JOSEPH - THE MACOMB DAILY

The Facts

The Facts:

• DACA is the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.

• The policy has allowed an estimated 800,000 young adult unauthorized immigrants to work legally since 2012 and protected them from deportation. It allowed for a permit to be able to work, allowed the applicant to apply for a social security number, and was renewable every two years.

• Applicants had to be at least 15 but less than 31 when they applied, and in the country continually since 2007.

• The policy was rescinded by President Donald J. Trump in early September.

Christian Martinez was just three-years-old when he came to the United States.

At time, he and his parents had visas to stay in the country temporarily, but in the end, never returned to Mexico. Today he has two younger siblings, six and 11, who are both United States citizens.

He’s 17 years old this year, finishing up high school in the Waterford School District.

But instead of focusing solely on his school-work, working his part-time job in construction and attending a good university where he can study architecture, he’s spending countless hours lying awake at night, wondering what’s going to happen to both him and his family.

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Ever since President Donald Trump announced the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, Martinez hasn’t been able to sleep at night. Those in the program are sometimes called ‘dreamers’ since the program is seen as a path to citizenship.

On Oct. 5, he’ll reapply for renewal of his status under DACA for what could be the final time.

DACA is an American immigration policy that was established by the Obama administration in June 2012.

It allows some individuals who entered the country as minors, often with their parents, to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and eligibility for a work permit.

“If it doesn’t get renewed again, they might come look for me,” Martinez said. “I want my siblings to finish school, I don’t want them to feel bad and see me taken away.”

His parents talk with him about what they would do if DACA was terminated permanently, but they never finish the conversation Martinez said, because they just know don’t what’s going to happen.

“What are we going to do? My parents … I don’t want to see them go. I even have trouble sleeping because I’m thinking about my family every night.”

Martinez has been in the workforce since he was in sixth grade, saving up money for the things like new clothes and television – just like any other teenager in the United States. If he was deported, he’d be forced to leave that all behind.

“I just don’t know what to do,” he said. “I think things over and over and all the things I’ve bought have taken me a lot of hard work to save up for. I don’t want to leave them behind or sell them to someone else.”

View From Mexico

“That was the most inhumane option,” Fox said during an interview prior to his speech at Wayne State University Sept. 18 on immigration, the wall, trade, jobs and deportation. Fox’s appearance was part of the Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society’s fall lecture series.

“He’s not closing the door on illegals,” Fox continued. “He’s closing the door on 800,000 energetic and young minds who could contribute to America’s future.

“It’s unfair, it’s criminal,” said Fox, who served as Mexico’s president from 2000 to 2006. “DACA kids deserve to stay in school – to stay in this nation.”

Fox is a former Coca Cola executive and the former governor of Mexico’s Guanajuato state from 1995 to 1999. As governor, he encouraged trade with the U.S.

Fox said people in the DACA program shouldn’t be called ‘illegals.’

“They have been in total compliance of the law provided by the Obama administration,” he said.

Despite that, Fox said he’s hopeful the U.S. president will engage in some type of dialog that produces an alternative to ending the DACA program.

“I’m ready to sit down with him (Trump) anytime, just me and him,” Fox said, noting that ending the DACA program and other U.S. immigration policies will only benefit Mexico.

“The trend of migration is changing,” Fox said. “It has reversed in the past five years from the states to Mexico because now we have the jobs and the education for them. This is going to hurt the U.S. dramatically but not Mexico.”

DACA In A Nutshell

To apply for DACA, individuals had to:

• Have come to the United States before their 16th birthday,

• Have lived continuously in the United States since June 15, 2007,

• Were under age 31 on June 15, 2012,

• Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of their request for consideration for deferred action under DACA,

• Had no lawful status on June 15, 2012,

• Have completed high school or a GED, or been honorably discharged from the armed forces, or enrolled in school, and,

• Have not been convicted of a felony or serious misdemeanors, or three or more other misdemeanors, or otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.

Nationally, there are an estimated 800,000 in the U.S. under the program. In Michigan, there are 13,873 approved for the program, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Talented youth

Dr. Jorge Chinea of Macomb Township, associate professor and director of the Center for Latino and Latin American Studies at WSU, defended youth in the DACA program.

“When you close the door on immigration you are closing the door on economic development,” Chinea said. “These young people are grateful to be here and they want to show the country what they can do.”

Sergio and Tannia Rodriguez-Valenzuela, from Grosse Pointe Park, are siblings and both international students of Chilean descent with student Visas, and seniors at WSU.

“We believe that as long as you want to help the community, you should be able to. Compassion for those in need isn’t restricted to any one major,” said Sergio Valenzuela, a biomedical physics major who was among the crowd that attended Fox’s lecture.

“You can help in many ways,” he added. “Maybe you’re bilingual and you can translate, maybe you’re good with computers and you can help organize information.”

Clinton Township was the first community in the country to sign up as a “Welcoming Township,” an initiative designed to bring together immigrants and U.S. born residents.

“I think anyone who comes to this country needs to be properly vetted,” said Bob Cannon, the township supervisor. “I don’t know why (DACA) cannot continue in the positive vein that it’s been.”

“I’m not in favor of granting amnesty across the board,” Taylor said. “But the children of immigrants, who did not make any conscious decision to break any of our laws and who are working or going to school? Certainly there should be a way to get them on a path to citizenship.”

Unless Congress enacts something to preserve the program, DACA won’t be the way for young undocumented youth to stay in the U.S.

Amidst the uncertainty of what will happen with the DACA program, Martinez, the Waterford Township teenager, is still trying to focus on moving forward and fulfilling his dreams.

“I don’t want to leave because I’ve spent most of my life here. I want to finish my education. I want to become successful. I’m pretty smart, I know I can go and become what I want to become. I want to help my family out, get my citizenship, so I can do something for them too.”

(Story by Natalie Broda and Charles Crumm of The Oakland Press, and Gina Joseph of The Macomb Daily)